Staying Brings Me Sorrow, Leaving You is Worse
by cookies5529
Summary: My sequel to Let Me Stay and is a mpreg (by popular demand) I suggest that you read the first one to lesson the confusion. Takes place about 5 1/2 yrs or so after Watanuki "inherits" the store. Rated T to be safe.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: I _STRONGLY_ advise you to read Let Me Stay first, so this will make sense. If not...well, I can't be blamed for you being confused at the beginning. Okeday? ^_~ Oh, and I will have the TRC crew mixed up in there EVENTUALLY...just be patient. Guess who I made poor Watanuki's doctor? First clue: It's not Seishiro. I would never be that cruel to my Kimi-chan. Just imagine Seishiro with a scalpel and long needle! Scary! (X/1999 or Tsubasa) *hides under computer chair*

Chapter 1: It'll Be Okay

Doumeki watched in dismay as Watanuki ran as fast as he could towards the bathroom, losing what little breakfast he'd managed to get down. Doumeki got up, eventually ending up in the bathroom with him. Looking down at him slightly concerned, he hoped the ever-so-hormonal Watanuki wouldn't kill him.

"Kimihiro? Do you need help getting into bed? Or maybe you wanted a bath?" he tried.

He supposed that at this point he might as well just give him a loaded gun...because he was as good as dead. Death had never frightened him that much, but an overemotional and high-strung Watanuki sometimes could.

"I'm fine!" Watanuki growled. "Since _when_ did I ever need _your_ help?!"

Watanuki watched as Doumeki arched an eyebrow, but _wisely_ chose not to comment on what he had said. Doumeki slowly kneeled down on the ground, not even flinching when he saw Watanuki's hand head towards him...or so he thought. He could do nothing but watch as Watanuki was finally reduced to dry heaves. Groaning, he rubbed his stomach to try and alleviate some of the nausea and pain, to no avail.

"Kimihiro?" Doumeki all but whispered, inching closer.

Watanuki's head began to feel fuzzy, as he struggled to stay upright. He barely noticed Doumeki as he felt his arms finally give out. On his way to what he figured was blissful unconsciousness, he found himself thinking it was totally ironic seeing as Doumeki had just asked him if he wanted help to bed. Now he'd be getting help getting there whether he liked it or not. Having not felt the harsh impact of the hard unforgiving floor of the bathroom, he figured Doumeki had caught him...again. Blinking slowly to get the fuzziness to go away, he looked up at him.

"Dou...Shizuka?" he mumbled tiredly.

Doumeki arched an eyebrow, but kept silent.

'Another mood swing, I see.'

"What is it?" he tried carefully, trying not to push another mood swing into motion. Because an exhausted Watanuki can be irritable...which is just downright unpleasant.

"I feel like _crap."_ he groaned, letting out a careful breath. "'Maybe you should be calling the doctor and talk to him about it.'" he continued with his eyes closed. "That's what you were thinking, wasn't it?"

"Hn."

Watanuki shook his head minutely, giving him a small smile.

"It's only been about four months, and this kind of thing is totally normal. I can't say that I'm enjoying it at all, but it's merely morning sickness. It usually will only last only the first three to four months. It's hardly the kind of thing I need to be bothering the doctor with."

Without Watanuki noticing, Doumeki had successfully made it with him in his arms and out into the house. When he finally _did_ come somewhat out of shock, they were in front of his bedroom door with Doumeki opening the shoji door in complete silence. Within moments, Watanuki was gently placed on the bed as the shock completely wore off. As Doumeki walked off, Watanuki reached out for his arm. Having felt a sudden emotional rush of loneliness and fear of being alone, he grabbed his arm as quickly as he could.

"Shizuka!" he all but cried out, with irrational tears brimming in his eyes. "Please! I don't want to be alone! You...Can't you stay at least a little while?"

Doumeki stood in a rare moment of shock for a moment before turning back and walking to the bed. Sitting down on the bed, he suddenly thought about how oddly quiet it seemed to be in the house. Obviously, everyone was in hiding, not wanting to deal with Watanuki's mood swings. Walking from the bedroom into the main living area, he smirked at the general silence he was receiving.

"He's sleeping now. You can come on out."

Mokona was the first to appear, having been followed by the oddly quiet twins that were coming from another room.

"Is Master resting?" they asked together.

"Hn."

In a house that was generally chaotic at best, the overwhelming silence was somewhat unsettling and Doumeki was wondering how long it would last. Mokona and Doumeki looked at each other for a little while before the former leaped onto a small table to ask the most obvious question.

"How long will this last?"

Doumeki sighed inwardly, wondering the same thing himself. He could do nothing but give the sole information he already had.

"Kimihiro said that this kind of thing was normal for the first part of the pregnancy. I wanted him to ask the doctor about it, but he said it's completely normal, so there's no reason for bothering him for that kind of thing. I think that if it last more than five months than we should talk to his doctor."

"That's true. Currently, it's been almost four months. So, after a few weeks..."

"Hn."

"This could be a long month."

TBC...

Alright. I might do a little more tonight, but currently it's about 1 AM and posting sounds exhausting. Meh...But I do have more written! See you guys later! And tell me what you think cause I've never written this kind of thing before. *bites nails in anticipation*


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Just a quick note for everyone who has been reading so far: I'll be basically going month by month until about the last month or so. That's where the real fun begins. ^_^ It's not that it hasn't been adventurous so far, but it gets really interesting right about then. Have you guessed who the doctor is yet? o_O

Last time: Watanuki has been seriously suffering from the morning sickness and the mood swings aren't any easier for Doumeki than they are for Watanuki. Even the house has settled down...

Chapter 2: You're Hiding From Us

5 months

Everyone was thankful when the morning sickness stage had finally passed. In Watanuki's personal opinion, the person who declared it to be only in the morning was either lucky or not the one that was suffering and doing the marathons from the kitchen table to the bathroom floor. Just thinking about it made him outright irritable. It took four and a half months for him to start to gain weight and not lose it.! Of course, now that he was past THAT lovely stage, he was starting an even weirder one. It was getting outright ridiculous. That's what this is. Maybe that explained why he suddenly had the urgent desire to have a melon...with chocolate?

'Dammit. I think my brain is completely gotten fried or something else from this. I never liked this kind of...'

Doumeki walked into the kitchen, cutting off his train of thought. He was carrying a few bags of groceries and started to unload what seemed to be totally unrelated things on the counter.

"I got some of those cookies you've been eating lately." he was saying, as if Watanuki had missed the first part of the sentence.

"Did you get a melon? I want to make melonpan again."

"Yeah. I got some of that peanut butter you seem to like too."

Watanuki's eyes lit up a bit, obviously having come up with another mixture that somehow sounded good to him.

"Hey! Maybe I should put some of it on top?"

Doumeki had pointedly started to turn around and put up the groceries that were out of reach, hiding his grimace. Not that it made a difference. Watanuki yanked his arm, forcing him to look him in the eyes. Well, as well as one could with their height difference.

"Okay. What is your problem?!"he growled out, narrowing his eyes menacingly.

"I was just thinking that maybe...you should just cook for yourself? Not all of us have cravings like you do. That's all." he said as gently as possible.

It was at this point that he saw several emotions cross Watanuki's face...and if at all possible, incredibly fast. It started out as hormonally pissed off, which gave way to shock and now was stuck on tears. Doumeki inwardly facepalmed, trying to think of a distraction.

"What's wrong?"

I didn't mean to...I mean, I guess you're right." he said, trying to blink away his tears unsuccessfully.

"Don't worry about it." he said, wiping the tears with his thumbs.

Slightly nodding, he took the cookies and put some in a bowl with some peanut butter and mixed it together. It was another one of those weird snacks he'd never liked before but had started eating lately. Sitting at the table, he started to talk to Doumeki about random things when something popped into his mind.

"Where is everyone? It's pretty quiet for quite a while and that's really...different and kinda disturbing in it's own way."

"I think they've gone outside for a while. Why?"

Watanuki shook his head, as if saying it didn't matter anyway. Looking down at himself for a moment, he thought for a moment before continuing on a completely random subject.

"Do you think I'm gaining too much weight?" Watanuki asked him, having gone to the nearest mirror in the house. Looking at his reflection, he turned around and listened to what Doumeki would say.

"Hn?" not really paying attention to the sudden subject change.

"Doumeki! Just answer the stupid-" he yelled, before he had the breath knocked out of him. He knew the reason for it, but he didn't need everyone else knowing the truth. It was too late anyway.

"Kimihiro?!" he practically yelled.

Seeing Doumeki sprint the short distance across hallway to his side, he quietly cursed and put on his 'everything-is-fine-so-stop-worrying' look.

'An excuse. I need some sort of reason or something by the time he asks me what happened.'

What happened? Are you okay?"

"Yeah, it's nothing to worry about."

But you were just-"

Watanuki just shook his head and sighed a bit, putting a hand to gently caress his slightly protruding stomach.

"Hmm. Little one just kicked me really hard and took me by surprise, that's all. Even the kid thinks you're an idiot apparently." he told him, giving him an 'I'm-fine-so-just-leave-it-alone' look.

Doumeki arched an eyebrow, not sure if he should be amused, confused, or maybe just outright determined to find out what Watanuki was hiding. Despite his warring emotions, he could easily tell that he was being told to back off. He was suddenly pulled none too gently back into reality, just to face a fairly emotional Watanuki...again. Having been caught by surprise at his actions, his head now hit the proverbial wall before he was aware that said wall existed. In retrospect, he supposed that his delayed response must have set him off...again.

"So, you don't want to?" he asked, Doumeki shocked at this new turn of events. Of course, Watanuki being Watanuki...didn't let him even have a chance to defend himself. So. Why not make things more interesting?

"Why? Don't you want the kid anymore?" he went on quietly, now with tears in his eyes. "So, you don't even love me? Is that it?" he mumbled and started sniffing. Doumeki could do nothing but watch as the emotional roller coaster just seemed to be getting worse.

"If that's the case, then why the HELL am I even pregnant?!" he went on, yelling very passionately with tears streaming down his face. His wild emotions seemed to have taken their toll, as he went to go sit on the bed. "Don't look at me! I'm still pissed at you! And...I'm fine. Just go away already."

Despite Watanuki's obviously wishing for otherwise, Doumeki sat down near the bed and gave him a questioning look.

"Seriously. I'm okay. I'm just really tired is all."

'Gee, I wonder why.' Doumeki thought sarcastically, fighting the urge to roll his eyes.

"Take a nap."

Watanuki gave him a look that suggested serious amounts of upcoming mood swings.

"I have to start dinner soon."

Doumeki arched an eyebrow, seriously doubting the meal wouldn't include something like cookies or peanut butter. Watanuki rolled his eyes in return, knowing exactly what Doumeki was insinuating.

"I'll cook your meals separate, okay? Just because I'm creative with my own meals doesn't mean that I have forgotten how to cook." he argued defensively.

'Uh. Huh. "Creative" is NOT the word I'd use to describe your meals.'

"A few minutes won't hurt. Besides, it's only 4pm."

Watanuki hissed quietly, trying to get in a comfortable position. It was getting harder and harder to do these days and the sleep deprivation was killing him.

"Can I help you at all?"

"Well, unless you can somehow get the kid to settle down long enough for me to get some sleep, I'd say no." Watanuki said tiredly.

"I guess that's why you're always up so early."

"Sometimes I sleep a few hours, but others I can't sleep at all."

Doumeki kneeled down next to him and started saying whatever random things came to mind. He was only slightly surprised when he felt Watanuki's hand slacken next to him. Looking up at him, he saw Watanuki in what he hoped was a deep sleep. Even if they missed dinner, it'd be fine as long as hefifinally got some sleep. Seeing as Watanuki was asleep, he covered him up and let him sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Before you say it as a whole...I will agree to it outright. I am a totally awful writer. T.T I haven't even posted on any of my stories for months it seems. :o I should be whacked upside the head. Repeatedly. For those who weren't paying too much attention, I'll repeat that I am going month by month...mostly.

Last time: It is becoming more and more obvious to Doumeki that Watanuki is hiding something from him. Is it possible it's something fatal?

6 months.

It seemed to be another exhausting and long day for one very hot and miserable shop owner. After the morning sickness had finally gone away, he went back to granting more wishes than before. It was almost exactly like it was before...mostly. Nothing too extreme and he had to be more careful. It was disgustingly hot outside, but he had no desire whatsoever to explain his current state to every customer he had. Therefore, in the MIDDLE of the SUMMER, he was forced to be practically ENGULFED in blankets, saying he'd been sick until recently.

'Well, it's not like I'm lying or anything.' he thought, somewhat amused. Having finished with his last customer, he stripped down to the lightest clothing he could manage. 'That feels SO much better.' Looking at the clock Doumeki had recently installed, he figured school was probably out by now. Doumeki was good company and all, but extremely tiresome after a while. Luckily enough, he was going to be at the temple for a good while. If all went according to plan, she'd be gone long before he even came home. It was kinda weird. He wasn't quite sure why he didn't want them running into each other, but it seemed like it would be better off that way. Watanuki sighed, just trying to get the feeling out of his mind. To make things easier for everyone in general, he remembered how Doumeki had told them about his wish long ago. It was entirely possible that he had gotten advice from the girls first, but that was the past. It was widely known as far as the pregnancy went. It was merely the everyday kind of people who didn't know. After all, secrets of this nature are hard to hide in the supernatural world. Watanuki facepalmed. He was really spacing out today. Picking up the phone, he dialed the all-too-familiar number. He couldn't help but wonder if she was even home yet.

'One ring. Two rings. Three rings...'

Just as he was about to hang up, he heard her pick up the phone and was obviously out of breath. He raised an eyebrow. It wasn't as if it was an emergency or something. She could've called back.

"Moshi moshi." said a familiar and yet exhausted voice.

"Hello, Kohane."

"Kimihiro! How are you? I practically never hear from you these days! Are you doing better with the morning sickness at all?" she asked, both surprised and concerned at once.

"Well, I-"

Kohane frowned, although he couldn't see it. He knew she could tell he called for a reason.

"Kimihiro, what's wrong?" she asked in the most gentlest voice she could muster.

"I'm doing fine with the morning sickness. I promise. I just wanted to say hi I guess."

"Kimihiro." she said evenly, not mad at him but definitely not pleased with him either. She didn't want to ask for too much, knowing he'd run away from her.

"Well, I think it's probably just these damn stupid hormones and I just want things that are just ridiculous."

'Ah ha! Now she was getting somewhere!' "Do you think you could try and tell me about it anyway? " 'That might have been too much to ask...or he may tell you. Hopefully.'

"Lately, I've never really wanted to be by myself. AndIknowthatsoundspathetic. Sorry! He probably thinks I'm so needy and crap like that."

'Ah. And the truth comes out.' "Did you want me to come over? You can tell me that, you know."

"I'm so pathetic, aren't I?"

"No, you know that's not true. I'll be there soon, okay?"

For a while, Watanuki nodded numbly, just agreeing to anything she was saying. After it soaked in, his eyes went wide as he gripped the phone tightly with both hands. Trying not to cry and upset her, he took a calming breath before speaking.

"I forgot!"

"Kimihiro?" Kohane asked suddenly, worried about the tone of her friend.

"Y-You have homework! And it's so hot outside!" he went on, practically frantic.

"Kimihiro, calm down. It's okay, really!"

"But-!"

"I've already done all of my homework and it's not that hot. It just seems that way because you're pregnant and all. Are you ready for me to come over?"

Watanuki blinked, almost forgetting why he had been so frantic in the first place.

"Oh. Yeah." he told her, now excited again for her to come over.

Once they had been together for a while, Kohane noticed what Doumeki had. She was coming over more and more frequently as the days went by, dealing with the mood swings and "severe cramps" as Watanuki was calling them. Even if it was becoming more and more obvious these days, they always seemed to receive the same answer. Whether it was silent or VERY verbal, the answer remained the same as ever. It said: Back-off-and-go-away. Neither of them were sure why, but they never questioned it all the same. They both had a gut feeling that they knew was truly foreboding in the worst of ways. Of course, that also made it inevitable that Watanuki's worst fear would come true.

It was true. He was never afraid of Doumeki cheating on him, least of all with Kohane. But he knew that they were up to something. He'd seen the meaningful looks at the table. They were anything but romantic, but still held a secret all the same. It was his greatest fear come true. He knew things were going to be different from now on, and that it was probably his fault. He thought about begging for forgiveness and telling him everything, but he'd hate him either way. He would grant his wish and give him his child...maybe even a wife in the process. It had been a long day and he was tired of the emotional roller coaster. He felt like throwing up, so he went to bed and tried to take a nap. He hated this.

Doumeki and Kohane watched Watanuki poke at the dinner on the table, feeling the tension building day by day. Doumeki was on his last nerve with all of this, as he had been trying to give him plenty of space as Kohane had suggested. That seemed to just have made things worse and worse than it was before. Apparently, he was thinking that there was something between the two of them. 'If he didn't force us to have the meetings in private, things wouldn't look so suspicious. She did tell me that it was normal for one that is pregnant to be quite...paranoid.' Shaking his head, he hoped for at least a decent amount of time until his hormones reared their respective heads.

"Kimihiro. Can I ask you something?"

Watanuki turned to look at him, caught between hormonally pissed and emotionally straught.

"Yes."

Shaking her head, Kohane knew that Doumeki was struggling with this one.

"Kimihiro. Why do you think both of us are cheating on you? We both love you too much to do that sort of thing to you."

Doumeki gave her a look that said "blunt much?" Turning back to Watanuki, he noticed that while her strategy seemed to have worked...he had a face of someone who had just been slapped. 'Crap.'

"I'm sorry," he said quietly and brought his hands up to his face. "I-I really should have known. And it's true that a part of me did know that you never would." he said sadly. Curling up as much as he could, he sniffed and was blinking back most of the tears. They watched helplessly as he stiffened considerably as he tried to ride out the pain of another "cramp". They seemed to be getting longer and longer as the months flew by. It left the others wondering if the baby would survive the whole time, let alone Watanuki. Being left with the aftershocks of pain, he barely felt Doumeki move him to the bed.

"Where's Larg?" Doumeki demanded in general.

"Why? The doctor usually teleports anyway, right? Unless..."

"Yeah."

"Seven months is closer than it seems, I suppose."

Walking into the kitchen, Kohane looked around in a rare sense of urgency.

"Larg!"

"He's on his way." Larg said excitedly, bouncing up and down with urgency and excitement.

"What do you mean?" Kohane asked him, trying to keep up with him. "The doctor is coming here? Wait. I never called him, so..."

"He just knows these kind of things. And besides, Watanuki is due for a checkup."

They both felt something or someone else enter the shop grounds. Running to the other side of the house, they saw him enter the front door.

"Hello, there. I sense things are going rough for Watanuki. I suppose his seven month checkup will be a little bit earlier than I thought." he told them with a sad smile.

Kohane wasn't sure if she liked the look of the way things were progressing so far, but if anyone could figure out what was wrong with Kimihiro...it was him. Looking at him, he seemed kind and probably gentle. 'Another wizard, perhaps? Or is he simply a regular doctor from another dimension?'

TBC...I tried to make this one a little longer. Considering what I actually wrote down was only about a page and a half, I think I did pretty damn good. Ne? Well, considering I have barely written AT ALL these past few months...it's decent at least. XD


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: Okay! I've gotten a few PMs with a sort of WTH?! vibe attatched to them here lately. I promise things will start to fall into piece relatively soon. Hopefully, everyone has figured out who my lovely doctor is by now. ^_~ I'll warn you that things kind of...snowball from here on out. Alright, enough chitchat.

Last time: Kohane and Doumeki have started working together so they can get Watanuki to tell them what's going on. At first, Watanuki was sure there was something else...

Chapter 4: It's Not Okay

7 months

The doctor walked out of Watanuki's room, leaning against the nearest wall

'That stubborn...and he KNOWS they're going to ask me! What am i supposed to say to them?' he inwardly groaned, projecting is outright despair at his current situation.

Flashback

"You knew this would happen, didn't you?" he demanded, narrowing his eyes.

"I don't think it really matters anymore, do you? It's inevitable at this point, wouldn't you say?" Watanuki replied, trying to appear indifferent.

"It didn't have to be this way and you know it. Why would you do such a thing when I told you how this would-"

"It's too late for regrets. It's done and he'll get the heir he wanted."

The doctor gaped, staring at him in shock.

"This was a wish?! You went this far for a simple wish? Let him adopt, for crying out loud! Watanuki, this is serious"

Watanuki stared at him evenly, leaving no room for discussion on the matter. He sighed, shaking his head as he pointed in the general direction of the door.

"You know they won't let me leave without giving them answers, right? Watanuki."

"You will NOT-"

"Are you KIDDING?! You can't just keep this up!" the doctor interrupted, keeping in mind that the others were probably trying to listen in.

"How long do I have?" Watanuki asked, obviously dreading the answer but curious all the same.

"A month at the most, but maybe not even that long. After that..."

"Doctor/Patient Confidentiality." Watanuki told him without preamble, leaving the doctor obviously to burn at the stake. He knew what this meant. It was time for evasive manuevers...

He sighed. and looked up in timme to see everyone start to corner him,, asking all sorts of questions that he knew he couldn't answer. Larg jumped on his head, asking a million questions as Kohane tried to get in one or two. He grabbed Larg and looked him in the eyes regretfully.

"I'm sorry, but I can't answer of your questions right now."

"Why not?"

In a rare show of frustration, he gestured behind him tiredly.

"Watanuki has FORCED my hand, telling me not to say anything to anyone until further notice."

"How did he-"

"Doctor/Patient confidentiality. I can't let anyone know anything he doesn't want them to and he knows that...like usual." he shrugged, as he started to walk back towards the front door. Smiling sadly, he looked at them once more. "I truly AM sorry."

After the doctor left, Kohane stood there both curious and yet frustrated at the same time. She was frustrated that she still didn't have any answers and yet curious as to who this doctor really was.

"Larg, who was that doctor? What was his name? He seemed...different from our usual customers , but there's something there." she said, thinking out loud.

"His name is Fai. He's great! Soel says that he's like a mommy, because of how he likes to take care of people."

Kohane arched an eyebrow. She had to agree that he definitely had some feminine qualities to him, but as to why Mokona called him Mommy...Well, that could always be asked later she supposed.

"He certainly seems kind, like how he was apoligizing for the way he couldn't tell us anything. I should really talk to Kimihiro about that. It certainly wasn't HIS fault that Kimihiro chose to do that."

"Hm."

The next time she saw Doumeki, Kohane told him what Fai had told both her and Larg. After the initial shock wore off, he all but punched the nearest wall. She looked at him in surprise, wondering what could have set him off so drastically.

"Shizuka?"

"I don't know exactly how bad things are or how long. he's known, but this isn't the first time I've seen something like this."

"What do you mean, Shizuka?" Kohane asked.

"In the past, whenever something is TRULY wrong..." he started, looking in the direcction of his room, "he will hide."

"That's true. How bad do you think it is?"

Doumeki shook his head, not entirely hopeful about the situation.

"I'm not sure, but it's definitely not good."

Watanuki saw the shoji doors open, revealing a serious Doumeki and a slightly withdrawn Kohane. He arched an eyebrow, moving the best he could so that he could see them better,

"What's-"

"Kimihiro, how could you do this?"

Watanuki gulped, feeling a sudden dread creeping up on him. He had an overwhelming urge to just ask how much they knew and if it was Fai who told them. But after looking upon what could be his doom, he decided to put it off as long as possible. So, he did the only thing he could do: evade.

"What do you mean?"

"Don't play-"

"Kimihiro, I hate seeing you like this! Please?"

"Kohane?"

She knew that he hated lying and felt guilty about it, and planned to use it if she could. Lowering her voice to be as soft as possible, she watched his resolve crumble bit by miserable bit.

"Kimihiro, we both love you and care for you. Can't you tell us what's wrong?"

Doumeki inwardly facepalmed. How did she DO that? He turned to Watanuki, to see him biting his lip in contemplation.

"Kimihiro?"

Nodding silently, he wiped away a few stray tears that seemed to come from nowhere.

"Yeah. I know I'm being stubborn and I can't even tell you why anymore." he confessed, reaching out for Doumeki's hand. His tears had turned into a steady stream, making him look smaller than his seven-month pregnancy SHOULD look.

'It never was easy for him to admit things like this, even on his best days.' "It's okay."

He shook his head and smiled grimly at the two of them, having decided to finally confront them.

"That's just it. I...I have something to tell you guys."

Doumeki and Kohane glanced at each other, which did not go completely unnoticed but ignored all the same. Kohane reached over and held his other hand in support. Watanuki looked at them both and dropped his smile altogether.

"The chances that this will end well is...pretty slim, I guess. I'm sure you've noticed that by now, haven't you?"

Kohane let go in shock, collapsing bonelessly in a nearby chair.

"Kimihiro...Please tell me you're not telling us that you are-"

He turned to her the best he could, nodding a bit, before looking at her with determination in his eyes.

"Nothing is set in stone, Kohane, and I don't plan on just giving up."

Stone. Doumeki's blood turned to ice at that word. The news in general had left him reeling in shock, but that word...somehow it left him with an eerily foreboding feeling. It made him feel ill. Why hadn;t Fai DONE anything or at least SAID something?

"Um...Shizuka?"

Doumeki blinkedm forced out of his depressing thoughts.

"Hn?"

"I'm sorry, but I really couldn't do much to avoid it."

Watanuki muttered curses, amazed at how he stupidly phrased that.

"So, it was POSSIBLE to avoid?" Doumeki asked, feeling his earlier frustrations return.

"Not entirely." Watanuki answered shortly.

"Well, why didn't you try harder?!"

"I-I didn't want you to be in pain. I'm used to it by now...you know?" he told him, feeling the beginning of a cramp. Biting his tongue, he tried hard not to make too much noise by screaming in pain. As he felt the blood pounding in his ears, he became aware of Doumeki calling his name...loudly.

"-nuki!"

"What?" he mumbled tiredly, rubbing his temples to ease the ache threatening to stay there.

Doumeki sighed, grateful to finally hear a reply.

"It's just going to get worse, isn't it?"

"Well, most pregnancies are like that I hear."

"Kimihiro."

"Fine!" he growled, struggling to stay awake. "I'm not entirely sure, but I suppose it's possible if not quite likely. I know that the last few weeks or so, Fai outright TOLD me he was just going to be staying here. He even said that I didn't get to have an opinion on the matter."

"He's right. You don't."

"Shizuka, you can't-" he interrupted himself with a yawn, "be serious! The last few days are fine, but a few weeks?"

"We'll talk about this all later when you're not so tired."

Watanuki frowned but eventually acquisced. Doumeki helped him lay back down comfortably as he could, noticing how his weight seemed to fluctuate. He couldn't help but wonder if that sort of thing was even normal. Shaking his head, he left with Kohane trailing behind him silently.

8 1/2 months

Doumeki watched from the doorway as Watanuki clumsily attempted to reach for a box of cookies on the shelf that was usually kept on the counter for that reason specifically. Growling in frustration at his oversized stomach, he was one step short of an all out hormonal fit. Deciding to finally help, Doumeki grabbed the cookies and led an unsuspecting Watanuki to their newly acquired Western style table.

"I'll get a napkin for you, so sit down. Do want peanut butter to go along with it?"

"Do I want...? NO, and I was fine standing. I was just a little hungry is all, so why are you even BOTHERING me? And why do we have these chairs in my kitchen?!"

Doumeki sighed. It wasn't as if they bought these chairs YESTERDAY. It was the table that was new and yet he chose to make comments about the chairs...

"You were having problems sitting on the floor, Kimihiro. Stay seated and let me clean up the kitchen before I have to tie you down to that chair."

Watanuki gave him a glare that would melt ice. Not that it made a difference to Doumeki, having been on the receiving end of said glare for these past months at least twice a day.

"So, was there anything else or are you two done scavenging the kitchen for now?"

Watanuki blinked in confusion.

"Us...two?"

Doumeki inwardly sighed at this, hoping that it was obvious.

"Yes. You..." he said pointing to Watanuki "two." He said just as obvious, pointing towards his stomach. Really, Watanuki was such an idiot sometimes.

"Oh." he said, somewhat surprised. "I...I guess so."

''Hn. Let's go then." Doumeki told him, offering his arm.

"Where are we going?" Watanuki asked him curiously, getting up with some difficulty.

"WE are not going anywhere. YOU are going to go lay down and rest. Don't think I haven't noticed you up and around doing things today."

"Are you serious?! I feel fine!"

"Kimihiro, what did Fai tell you the last time?" Doumeki asked him tiredly.

"I know! But what point is there in resting if I can't sleep?!"

"At least try."

"Shizuka, I feel-" Watanuki stopped, feeling a debilitating twinge that brought him to his knees,, or at least it WOULD have had Doumeki not been there. He had recently learned to pay close attention to the warning signs. It was becoming somewhat of a unrelenting and yet somehow predictable ritual as of late. Watanuki was still fighting for his independence, in whatever way he could. He knew it wouldn't be long until it was just a dream of the past, especially once Fai got back. This only lead to Watanuki passing out from the pain, which would keep him unconcious for hours at a time. At least there would be several questions he could have answered by the time Fai arrived. He picked up Watanuki, who had once again gone unconcious from the pain. Looking around, he didn't see anyone around. Kohane was only around a few times a week, sometimes staying the night out of sheer necessity. No one else was around, leaving a truly eerie feeling echoing throughout the shop. These quiet days made him nervous, almost like the calm before the storm. Walking into the bedroom, he placed Watanuki in bed in an all-too-familiar fashion. Shaking his head, he leaned against the doorframe and thought about the current state of things, which was shaky at best. The store was all but closed, seeing how Watanuki was hardly in any shape to be granting wishes. More often than not, they were turning people away and telling them things they thought they needed to hear. It was awful. There were a few times Watanuki was well enough to help, but Doumeki thought he shouldn't push himself like this. They needed to close the store until this storm blew over. Maybe Fai could come help?

TBC...

I know I seriously jumped around in this last chapter, BUT pretty much everything happens in the ninth month...especially the last week or so. And I just (like 5 sec ago) came up with a hidden surprise. It involves Fai and I'm pretty sure will make his life...interesting. R&R! ^_~


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: Okay, then! I've been catching up on my writing since yesterday, since I apparently have nothing else I am currently doing. Have I learned how to use this keyboard somewhat decently? No, not really. I still look like a grammatically challenged twit. ^-^

Last time: Doumeki is still having trouble with Watanuki trying to grasp onto his last bits of freedom, being stubborn like he is. At 8 1/2 months along, he was still arguing when Doumeki finally got tired of it...right before Watanuki collapsed. Too much drama? Okay, maybe a little humor will be good!

Chapter 5: Welcome Back!

DxW*DxW*DxW*DxW*DxWDxW*DxW*DxW*DxW*

9 months~

Watanuki was sleeping more and more as the days went by, leaving everyone else to their own agendas. The tension and fear was simply overwhelming at times, to the point Watanuki demanded to be left alone. In the few times that he had taken short walks around the shop, he would CALMLY remind Doumeki that his feet and ankes were bothering him. Again. Doumeki winced, slightly afraid to ask and yet...

"Are you...Do you need any help?"

Watanuki sighed, having stopped to lean on a wall.

"I'm fine, but I need help getting back to the bathroom and I want to fill the tub up for a bath. Run some water as high as you can, because I feel all sweaty just from walking around this shop."

Doumeki arched his eyebrow, not saying anything about it being perfectly cool. He knew better.

"Hn."

Filling up the tub, he made sure that everything Watanuki needed would be in reach once he sat down. After it was a little over half-full, he helped him get in the tub and turned to leave.

"Just tell me when you want out. I'll be out here talking to Larg or something."

Watanuki nodded absentmindedly, just happy to be relaxing all of his sore muscles that came with the pregnancy. Suddenly, he felt another twinge. He would have hidden it completely if Doumeki was completely out of the bathroom.

'Ah, Hitsuzen. Thou are a cold, relentless bitch...'

Doumeki heard a small splash, followed by a somewhat subdued groan that made him turn towards the tub again. He quickly got next to Watanuki, inspecting everything he could see.

"Watanuki! How bad was it?"

"It wasn''t that bad." Watanuki told him, trying to hold back the aftershocks.

"That's it. I'm sorry,, Kimihiro, but you can't stay in there. It's too dangerous."

"Shizuka! Stop it! I said it wasn't that bad, and I wasn't lying."

Doumeki frowned, debating whether or not it was worth dealing with the hormone-induced rants or just letting him stay a few more minutes. In the end, his desire to keep his hearing won out.

"Fine, but only with me supporting you."

Watanuki looked up at him as he rolled up the pants and got behind him. Without warning or provocation, he started crying.

"What's wrong?" Doumeki asked, almost regretting the words as he said them.

"It...It's because of my weight isn't it?" he asked quietly, sniffling.

'WHAT?! Where did THAT come from?! Oh, Kami...'

"The only problem is your twinges you've been having. I just don't want you to drown, Kimihiro. I never said anything about your weight at all."

"Really?" he asked quietly, rubbing his eyes. "I'll be careful! Just let me stay for a little while longer!" he started whining.

'He's either bi-polar or hormonal. I'm just not sure which one it is.' Doumeki sighed. "Fine, but then we're getting out."

30 minutes later~

Doumeki went to their room with an unconscious Watanuki in his arms...again. It had happened mere moments after he'd helped him get dressed. Usually he got dressed on his own, but by now he had exhausted himself from the episode in the bath.

Moments earlier~

Watanuki paused mid-step when they were exiting the bathroom, which to Doumeki, was never a good sign.

"Sh-Shizuka. I-" he said breathlessly.

Doumeki was right behind him, ready to catch him if he were to fall.

"It's okay, Kimihiro. Just breathe your way through it like always."

Doumeki then caught him right as he fell towards the floor. 'Just like always.'

Present~

Doumeki looked at Watanuki worriedly, wondering if he should try and contact was earlier than planned, but better safe than sorry. He wasn't planning on coming here until a week or so later, but things weren't looking too good at this point. He left the room to search for Larg, only to find him and the girls drinking tea with..Fai? He blinked.

Fai waved at him, as if he were an old friend that he hadn't seen in a while. Doumeki arched an eyebrow, waiting to see if he misunderstood something. Fai then waved everyone else off, saying it was "adult talk that they'd be bored listening to", while pointing to a cushion across from him. His expression had turned serious, now that everyone else was gone.

"There's something wrong that worries you about his condition." he started off, trying to find a starting point for the conversation.

Doumeki stared at him in disbelief.

'Must be a wizard thing...probably.' he thought to himself. "He's sleeping right now, though. Did you want to wake him up?"

Fai smirked, realizing how Doumeki had cleverly danced around his declaration. He tapped his finger on his chin in thought, making Doumeki almost nervous for some reason.

"No, not yet. We'll let him sleep while we come up with some solutions to our latest round of dilemmas. After that, I'll run back and get some more supplies that I need. I really only brought the basic stuff, because I rushed over here again."

Doumeki inwardly sighed in relief, knowing Watanuki could get some more sleep. Wait...'Dilemmas? Something tells me this won't be that easy.'

"I just wish it were that simple.. It will be quite the race for me towards the end of the..." looking at Doumeki while he spoke. He stopped mid-sentence, realizing the strange look Doumeki was "wearing".

'Seriously, it's GOT to be a wizard thing. Or maybe it's just a "There's no such thing as coincidence in this world." Damn, that witch for popping in my head. She's dead, for Kami's sake!)

"Are you sure you're okay? " Fai said, looking concerned.. "You seem...bothered by something. Maybe you're somewhat distracted or feeling unwell?"

"I was just thinking about some things, but it's not important."

"Well, if you're sure...let's go ahead and start listing some things so we can start going from there."

Doumeki nodded, as he was eager to start.

3 hours or so later~

"This all seems pretty complicated, if you ask me. How bad is it?" Doumeki asked, looking through their piles of "research". Sighing, he shook his head. "I can't make heads or tails out of most of it, anyways."

"Ah. Well, it takes medical knowledge to understand most of it, so don't feel bad about it. I'll just have to work fast. While it doesn't seem COMPLETELY promising at this point, it doesn't make it hopeless either. We're only writing things down after all. I'll do as much research as I can in the limited time I have." Fai said gently. "Now that I have at least a bit of a start, I have a check-up to do. It's just going to be a basic one, seeing as I have no equipment on me. It'll pretty much be the old fashioned way."

"And then?'

"Let's just start there, shall we?" Fai said as he folded up all the research and tucked it away. They went to see Watanuki, Doumeki coming in a bit after Fai. He watched as Fai tried to convince Watanuki to stay awake for just a little while longer. He was pretty sure that somewhere in the "argument" he heard his grandfather's name, which earned Fai a flinch and a tired looking glare..

"That's not very nice, Fai. Quit playing around."

"Well, it seems that you're awake. Good." Fai said, apparently outright ignoring Watanuki's protests. Doumeki had to smirk at that, wondering what kind of relationship these two actually had. "I'm going to be having a general look at you now, so I'd appreciate some cooperation this time around." he finished, tapping him on the nose gently. Turning to Doumeki with a wink, he smiled and ignored a pouting Watanuki. "Doumeki, if you would?"

Doumeki helped Watanuki to sit up somewhat to make it easier for Fai. He looked between the two curiously, having never been here during one of these checkups. Fai felt around on his stomach, asking questions as he went along. Conjuring up a light spell, he checked his eyes, throat and his ears.

"Doumeki says that they've been worse lately. Is that true?"

Watanuki bit his lip, looking at the floor. He glanced at Fai, seemingly not in the mood for questions. After a quick look at Fai, he took a permanent glance at the floor. At that point, Fai couldn't take it anymore. It actually took Doumeki by surprise...

"Kimihiro." Fai said coldly, narrowing his eyes.

'Well, this is new.' Doumeki thought. 'I've never seen HIM angry before. It's kinda scary, actually.' He watched Watanuki flinch slightly, still looking at the floor. He sighed, smiling quite humorlessly.

"You only call me by my given name like that when you're truly angry or when you want my attention. I'm guessing it's not the latter this time."

"You're right. Kimihiro, tell me the truth or so help me..."

"I know...and I suppose you're right."

"So it's true, then?"

"Yes."

Doumeki was shocked to absolute silence. He never knew someone who could scare Watanuki so much that he'd just willingly cooperate like that.

"Unfortunately,, I don't know whether it's because they're going to be early or-"

"Watanuki, what do you mean by 'they'?" Fai asked, shocked at something he didn't foresee happening.

Watanuki blinked, looking at the two others in the room.

"Well, it seems like there's more...activity than there would be with only one. But I'm not sure, really. I mean, this is the first time and..."

Fai nodded understanding, but not trusting his voice through the shock of this possibility.

"I suppose it's entirely possible, but I can't be sure without my equipment. I just came over without really bringing a lot like I usually do. I wasn't really expecting something like this to deal with, but after we're done with everything I'm going back for everything else. EVERYTHING" Fai took a calming breath, thinking about how he could've possibly missed something this obvious. "Comment est-ce arrivé?"(2) he mumbled, pacing back and forth. "Ah! I've got it!" he said, suddenly surprising the other two in the room.

Watanuki and Doumeki looked at each other, both clueless to Fai's brilliant conclusions.

"The other one must have hidden it's presence all along, probably in the back of the womb if I had to guess. So whenever I was doing my monthly checkups, I wouldn''t have noticed! Gah!" he yelled mostly at himself in an out-of-character-like way, his eyes lighting up.

"There's something else?" Watanuki asked, knowing that there was just by the look in his eyes. Fai nodded, tapping his chin in his all-too-familiar way.

"Now we've noticed the other possible one. I'm not saying there definitely is or is not two, BUT it's becoming more noticeable now. Why do you think that is?"

Watanuki rolled his eyes.

"Stop with the baiting, Fai. You already have a clue of some sort, don't you?"

"Yes. I think that this has to do with the one or two children making themselves more present at this point."

"Which means?"

"They're moving further down, of course. I'm sure you've noticed several straight kicks to your bladder by now, if not your kidney."

Watanuki paled. That DID explain a lot, he supposed. If not two children, then it was a very busy one.

"Maru! Moro!" Fai called, knowing they were trying to listen in from the other side of the door. As they entered the room, Fai smiled at them. "Can you go make some tea for Watanuki? Let Larg help you. He probably needs something to do anyway."

Watanuki pouted.

"I'm not thirsty, Fai."

Fai just smiled, ignoring his protest yet again.

"Don't worry about it!" Seeing Watanuki try and lay down again, he stopped him immediately.

"Fai, I. WILL. Kill. You." Watanuki said, glaring at him. irritably.

"Oh, I don't doubt that you'll at least try. But either way, you know you're not getting out of it, so stop trying. It doesn't matter how tired you are, it needs to be done."

Watanuki groaned, but nodded in defeat.

"I hate you. You DO realize that, right?"

"Of course I do. You tell me just about every time I see you." he said smiling. "Now, stop whining so much. It'll be over before you know it, so let's go." he reminded him as he effortlessly lifted him to his feet.

Doumeki opened the door for them, surprised by the new turn of events. He followed them, determined to get answers.

"Weren't you the one who told him to rest?" Doumeki asked him skeptically. Fai didn't answer at first, which led him to believe that he was being ignored. "Fai?"

"Yes."

"Yes?"

"You're right; I told him to rest." he answered without turning around. "But walking around every once in a while is good, two. I'd say that for just about ANYONE, though. And I never told you that he could NEVER get out of bed." Leading Watanuki tto a chair, he helped him sit down.

"Master!" Maru and Moro said in unison.

"Hello girls." he answered tiredly. "You're not making a mess in the kitchen, I hope?"

"No, we made the tea with Mokona! We did exactly what Mister Fai told us!"

Watanuki arched an eyebrow, not completely sure he wanted to know.

"Fai?" he asked irritably, looking up at the lithe man. Of course, said man just smiled innocently. If not for the mischevious looking twinkle in his eyes, he might have escaped suspicion.

"Yes, Watanuki?" he asked again, kneeling down in front of him.

'Brave man.' Doumeki thought, clearly amused at the two of them.

"Is that why you wanted me to come way out here into the kitchen?! So you could check on the tea?"

"Now, now. Calm down Watanuki. You needed to be walking anyways. But I suppose now that you mentioned it..."

"Fai..." Watanuki whined, ready to just collapse on the table. He wanted to yell at Fai out of frustration for him dragging him around like this, but he was just too tired for it.

"Okay, enough of that." Fai said quietly, gently taking one of his hands and letting him know he was serious now. "How are you feeling now?"

Watanuki bit his lip, thinking about what to say.

"Kimihiro, I'm serious."

Watanuki nodded, knowing he'd be forced one way or another to spill his guts.

"I'm all over the place emotionally, tired and sore. That''s all."

"Anything else?"

Watanuki blushed, nodding a bit. Leaning forward, he whispered something to Fai. Sighing, Fai shook his head.

"Well, that's perfectly normal. I don't see why you whispered. Who do want to...?"

Watanuki looked at him, shocked.

"Oh,, don't look at me like that. You're getting an escort, like it or not."

After making a slight detour, Watanuki was back in bed and supported by several pillows so he had some back support. Fai took the tea and put in a few herbs, before handing it to him.

"Drink up!" Fai told him a little too cheerfully.

Sighing, Watanuki stated the obvious..

"Medicine."

"Kind of. It'll help with your little excitability issue, maybe even get those twinges to go away. If not, well...there's more than one way to uh, à la peau d'un chat (2)."

"Fai, you're doing it again. I don't know where Larg is, but my Celesian is-"

"I doubt you heard something like that. Now, drink this.

Watanuki hissed slightly, looking at the concoction for the first time. "I made a relatively small dose, just to start out with."

Watanuki watched as the drink fizzed and mixed itself turning a light purple.

"Kimihiro. Don't make me pour that drink down your throat by force." Fai told him narrowing his eyes. "It looks a lot worse than it taste, okay?"

Watanuki looked at the drink again before swallowing it like a shot, trying to avoid the taste altogether. Doumeki smirked as he saw Watanuki glare at Fai, who just rolled his eyes.

'A mood stabilizer, huh? Watanuki's mood hasn't been stable for as long as I've known him.'

Watanuki had just handed the cup back to Fai, followed by a glare directed at Doumeki.

'What did I do this time?'

"You were thinking some very UNKIND things about me just now, weren't you?" he accused.

Doumeki looked at him in return, merely arching an eyebrow. He faintly registered Fai trying to contain his laughter, as he watches the two. At that point, Watanuki had given up glaring at Doumeki to look at Fai.

"Wha-? Fai! What's so funny?"

"I see you two haven't changed!" Fai told him, laughing so hard that he could barely breathe."Ahem. Now, I'm afraid that I have some bad news for the two of you."

(1) Comment est-ce arrivé= How did this happen?

(2) à la peau d'un chat= to skin a cat

TBC...

Yeah, I know. I'm really evil. But it's 4am and I should get some sleep so I can finish writing the next chapter. I mean, this is pretty long, right? Okay, I'll give a little preview.

"Fai!"

"Kimihiro, I'm serious! This is very important. You will NOT be getting out of bed unless it's for the bathroom."

^_~ I told you the 9th month was the best one! Toodles!


End file.
